With a child who is not taking initiative due to anxiety, work backwards through his favourite reading material right through to infancy if you have it. They have already developed a sentimental attachment to the object itself and therefore the amount of anxiety that is typically present with any reading session will be severely diminished. My idea is to focus on reading the same books nightly, and only as long as he is enjoying it. Bring him back to his love for stories.
Next I like to use pre-reading readiness paperback books that use pictures with the words for symbolism. Again it takes the stress off and stick to only the themes he is interested in, unless he wants a particular book, even better, let him make all of these decisions for you. Not only should you use subjects he is interested in, but something he is confident in his knowledge of the subject, this is important. A child with autism spends much time decrypting the language, intention, and imagining it being told by someone else, these are easier to do if you know the story, or subject quite well, and can focus finally on the actual text.
Now be ready for the next step at all times, never rid yourself of the earlier material until he has gone a few levels above without turning back. Next is to follow the leveled readers as they are listed. To save stress and hassle, I like to focus instruction on these books, and let other books simply live within the environment.
With a child who is learning phonics still, another approach is to simply keep picture books of his favourite playtime activities, shows, or subjects. Don't restrict the level of language, but ensure there is plenty of images. Concentrate on story time, and pretend play, narrate activities and comment on everything.
Verbally - AAC app for the iPad.
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